The Supreme Court has ordered the retrieval of case files in a writ petition challenging the eligibility of former nominated National Assembly member Bamdev Gautam, stating that he was ineligible to hold the post.
A constitutional bench comprising Chief Justice Prakash Man Singh Raut and Justices Sapana Pradhan Malla, Kumar Regmi, Til Prasad Shrestha, and Binod Sharma issued the order to obtain the case records after it was found that the original files were destroyed in an arson incident that occurred on Bhadau 24.
Senior Advocate Dinesh Tripathi and Advocate Badriraj Bhatt had filed separate writ petitions claiming that Gautam’s nomination to the National Assembly was unconstitutional and seeking its annulment. Gautam, who was then vice-chair of the Nepal Communist Party, had been defeated in the 2077 House of Representatives election before being nominated to the National Assembly.
Tripathi filed the petition naming the Office of the President, the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, the then Nepal Communist Party office, and Bamdev Gautam as respondents. The petition argues that the Cabinet’s recommendation for Gautam’s nomination was made with bad faith and malicious intent, and was in clear violation of Articles 2, 74, 86(2)(b), and 78(4) of the Constitution.
The petition states that nominating a person defeated in a House of Representatives election to the National Assembly within the same parliamentary term amounts to a serious disregard of the people’s mandate and represents a fraudulent and deceptive use of the Constitution.
Former President Bidya Devi Bhandari had nominated Gautam as a National Assembly member on Ashwin 1, 2077, in accordance with Article 86(2)(b) of the Constitution, based on the Cabinet’s recommendation dated Bhadau 29, 2077.
About the Author
